As the founding editor of Loaded, James Brown redefined magazine publishing and set the cultural agenda for a generation of young men.

After editing GQ and founding – then selling – his own publishing company, Brown now works as a media consultant and runs online magazine Sabotage Times, whose strapline: "We can't concentrate so why should you?" once again catches the spirit of the age.

In the first of a new series of interviews, Brown tells John Plunkett about his digital life: the day he binned his TV, why he prefers not to take his phone into the bedroom, and what soured his relationship with Apple. He also recalls how he came down to earth after an out-of-this-world interview with U2.

And if you're interested in 6,000 CDs – from the late 1980s to early 2000s – he's your man.